Terms of service

General Terms and Conditions for AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND BLAU International

Subject matter of the contract; scope of application
Legal notices
Orders; conclusion of contract
Prices; payment; default of payment
Delivery; Shipping costs; Delivery time
Subscription; terms
Right of withdrawal; cancellation policy
Warranty
Data protection
Use of email address in accordance with Section 7(3) UWG
Changes to the terms and conditions
Choice of law

1. Subject matter of the contract; scope of application

1.1 AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND GmbH, an affiliated company of Axel Springer SE (hereinafter also referred to as AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND), distributes the print product "BLAU International" (hereinafter also referred to as "BLAU") under its own brand.

1.2 The magazine Blau International is an art magazine and is offered for purchase via the Portal as individual issues or as a subscription (hereinafter collectively referred to as "Print Products"). In addition to the Print Products, Blau International offers limited art editions ("art prints") for purchase. Unless otherwise stated, only AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND's own products are offered on the portal. AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND therefore also becomes the user's contractual partner (see section 2). The portal itself is free of charge for users and does not require registration.

1.3 These terms and conditions apply exclusively to contracts with customers for the purchase of print products and art editions via the portal.

2. Legal notices

2.1 The contents of the portal are created and updated at considerable economic expense. The contents and works on the portal are subject to German copyright law. The reproduction, editing, distribution and any kind of use outside the limits of copyright law require the written consent of the respective author or creator.

The content on the website may only be used for the user's own private information purposes. Any use of the content beyond this or linking to the content for commercial purposes is not permitted. This applies regardless of legal protection, in particular to the trademarks and logo of WELT N24, photos and images, product descriptions, product data and other product information.

2.2 If and to the extent that no deviating or additional provisions regarding liability have been agreed, the following shall apply to the liability of AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND and its vicarious agents for damages:

In the case of contracts for chargeable products, AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND shall be liable, insofar as it is legally responsible for its actions or omissions, for damages suffered by the user that were caused intentionally or through gross negligence, are the result of the absence of a guaranteed quality of the object of performance, are the result of a culpable injury to health, body or life, or for which liability is provided for under the Product Liability Act, in accordance with the statutory provisions.

2.3 In the event of a merely negligent breach of essential contractual obligations (so-called cardinal obligations), liability shall be limited to such damages as are typically and foreseeably to be expected in the context of the provision of services such as those covered by the contract, provided that the damage does not relate to life, limb or health or a promised guarantee.

2.4 Cardinal obligations are contractual obligations whose fulfilment is essential for the proper execution of the contract and on whose compliance the contractual partner may regularly rely, and whose breach, on the other hand, jeopardises the achievement of the purpose of the contract.

2.5 Otherwise, liability – regardless of the legal basis – is excluded both towards AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND and towards its vicarious agents and assistants.

2.6 AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND shall not be liable for any damage suffered by the user as a result of the loss of data, provided that the damage could have been avoided by the user taking regular, complete and frequent backups of all relevant data in accordance with the value of the data.

3. Orders; conclusion of contract

3.1 The user submits a binding offer to conclude a contract at the end of the ordering process by clicking on the "Pay now" button. The contract is concluded when delivery begins or the product is shipped or made available.

3.2 A general prerequisite for concluding contracts via the portal is that the user is of legal age and otherwise has full legal capacity.

3.3 Contracts concluded via the portal are only available in English.

3.4 The contract between the user and AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND is not generally set out in a separate contract text relating to the user, which the user could then access at a later date. However, the content of the contract is determined by

the subject matter of the order, i.e. the relevant services (magazine or magazines, etc. and, if applicable, the price of the product),
these Terms of Use and Business Conditions and
statutory provisions

4. Prices; payment; default of payment

4.1 The prices stated in the offer on the portal are final prices for delivery within the EU and include the applicable German value added tax and, in principle, any fees (e.g. delivery fees in the case of a contract for the regular purchase of newspapers and magazines). In individual cases, however, it is possible that special regulations may apply to certain aspects of the contract execution outside the EU, in particular delivery fees. If this is the case, the customer will be informed accordingly at the checkout.

4.2 AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND may offer various payment options (e.g. credit card, PayPal), but is not obliged to do so. For payment processing via external payment service providers, the terms of use and business conditions of the respective payment service provider apply exclusively; if necessary, the customer must also have a user account with the provider.

4.3 If direct debit has been agreed, the payee is obliged to inform the payer of the amount and the date of the debit in advance. It is agreed that this advance information obligation shall be reduced to one working day.

4.4 As soon as and for as long as the customer is in default of payment, AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND is entitled to suspend delivery of the newspaper or magazine. If the customer fails to make payment on time, AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND shall send the customer a reminder setting a deadline. If the customer ignores these reminders, AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND shall be free to take further appropriate legal action and, in particular, to instruct a debt collection agency to enforce its rights.

4.5 In addition to the outstanding payment, the customer shall bear all necessary costs of legal action (including reminder fees (but not before the second reminder), costs for a debt collection agency, etc.). AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND expressly reserves the right to assert further claims.

5. Delivery; shipping costs; delivery time

5.1 Orders and deliveries are generally possible worldwide. The products will be delivered to the recipient address specified by the customer. Shipping costs vary by country and will be calculated upon entering the delivery address during checkout. When shipping abroad, additional customs duties may apply, which are always to be borne by the customer.

5.2 Delivery times depend on the respective shipping address and are specified separately on the website as part of the offers and in the order confirmation.

6. Subscriptions; terms

6.1 Subscriptions begin with the current issue and can be cancelled at any time. The magazine is published twice a year.

6.2 Subscriptions have no minimum term and the respective contract runs for an indefinite period unless it is cancelled within the period specified in the offer description. The contract can be terminated by either party at any time with four weeks' notice.

6.3 Both parties reserve the right to terminate a fixed-term contract for good cause.

6.4 Notices of termination must be in writing to be effective. Notices of termination by the customer must be sent to the editorial office at: subscriptions@blau-international.com or by filling in form provided on the website https://blau-international.myshopify.com/pages/subscription-cancellation

7. Right of withdrawal; withdrawal policy

All information on whether you as a consumer have a statutory right of withdrawal and the corresponding withdrawal instructions can be found at https://blau-international.com/policies/refund-policy

8. Warranty

The statutory warranty provisions apply.

9. Data protection

The protection and security of our customers' personal data is very important to us. The data protection provisions of Axel Springer Deutschland GmbH apply to the processing of inventory and content data as well as certain usage data.

10. Use of the email address in accordance with Section 7 (3) UWG

10.1 AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND, with which the user concludes a contract for a partner product, is entitled, within the scope of the legal permission under Section 7 (3) UWG, to use the email address provided by the user in the course of the order for direct advertising for its own similar goods and/or services, as they are the subject of the respective contract concluded.

10.2 However, if the user no longer wishes to receive direct advertising from AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND, they may object to the use of their email address at any time by sending an email to the email address specified in the portal's legal notice or by writing to the relevant contractual partner, without incurring any costs other than the transmission costs according to the basic rates.

11. Changes to the terms and conditions

11.1 AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND reserves the right to change these terms and conditions at any time without giving reasons. The terms and conditions will be sent to the customer in a suitable manner and, if necessary, by email. They shall be deemed to have been agreed if the customer does not object to their validity within 14 days of receipt of the notification. The objection must be made in writing, i.e. at least by email. The customer will be specifically informed in the notification of the possibility of objection, the deadline and the consequences of inaction.

11.2 If the customer objects, both AXEL SPRINGER DEUTSCHLAND and the customer have the right to terminate the relevant (subscription) contract(s) with immediate effect or at the scheduled end of the contract.

11.3 Furthermore, the possibility of amending the new terms and conditions in accordance with clause 10.1 does not apply to amendments that restrict the content and scope of the core usage options of the purchased services for the respective customer to the detriment of the customer, nor to the introduction of new obligations for the customer that were not previously included in these terms and conditions.

12. Choice of law

The law of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply exclusively to contracts concluded via the portal, including these Terms and Conditions of Use and Business, to the exclusion of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods and German and European international private law. If the user has concluded the contract as a consumer, the mandatory consumer protection provisions applicable in the country in which the user has their habitual residence shall also apply if and to the extent that these grant the customer further protection.

As of 17 July 2025